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A new set of rankings for seven different engineering subjects has been released by the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy.

Although universities in the United States dominate the rankings by taking more top positions than any other country, Chinese, Swiss and UK institutions are also very well represented across the different subject league tables of top universities for engineering.

The seven rankings in the Global Ranking of Academic Subjects for 2016 reveal between 100 and 400 of the best schools and colleges, depending on the availability of relevant data.

To help those deciding where to study engineering at university, we have published the top 20 universities for chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, energy science and engineering, environmental science and engineering, materials science and engineering, and mechanical engineering.

The rankings use measures of research productivity, quality and impact, international collaboration, global influence and academic awards.

Top 20 universities for chemical engineering

Chemical engineering teaches students how to turn raw materials into products; a degree offers opportunities to work in oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, energy, food and drink and many other industries.

A third of the top 100 universities for this course are in the US, but institutions in Asia and continental Europe also appear right at the top of the ranking. The UK is well represented outside the top 20, with 10 universities in the top 100.

Top 20 universities for environmental science and engineering

This multidisciplinary field combines all three hard sciences with engineering in order to connect knowledge of the environment to modern techniques in construction with the aim of protecting people and the planet from adverse conditions.

Top 20 universities for materials science and engineering

Materials science is an ideal course of study for anyone wanting to design and even discover new materials to solve some of the world’s most pressing scientific problems. Students graduate with an understanding of the history, structure and properties of materials, and this knowledge can be applied in a variety of contexts.

The US dominates the ranking, taking more than half the top 20 spots. But the UK also has a strong presence at the top of the list; Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial all appear.

The most productive university in this subject is Tsinghua University in China, which published more than 9,000 scholarly papers from 2010 to 2014.